20 Days and Counting!

That's right! There are only 20 days left until my FIRST marathon! Whoo!

I know I haven't written for a while, so I'll try to give you a decent update about how my training's been going.

I finally got new running shoes a couple weeks back! I went to Runner's World, checked out several different pairs, and found an awesome pair of Adidas with neon green borders. With me being so close to my marathon, the manager of the store (whose name is Scott) said that I'd want to get shoes that were most similar to my previous pair. So I got new running shoes that obviously fit well, along with some CLIF Shot Bloks and Gels to try for my longer runs. A few weeks back I was supposed to run a 20-miler, but because I had been sick and hadn't been running as much, I only made it 18 miles. Then I had another run where I was supposed to run 16 miles, but I only made it 15. There came a point where I was definitely tired of not completing the runs that I was supposed to.

Then came another 20-miler, about two weeks ago. With my feet finally accustomed to my new shoes, my Shot Bloks, iPod, Camel Pack, and all that other stuff you need for longer runs... I did it. Unfortunately I'd started my run a little too late, so by the time I finished it was about 10 o'clock, and decently dark outside. When I got back to my truck, I heard a whistle in the bushes--pretty sure it was a hobo, so I jumped into my truck really fast to avoid any possible hobo-attacks. It was just precautionary--and don't worry, I never got attacked by any hobos.

The success of my 20-miler gave me hope for my marathon. Last night I went on a 7-mile, midnight run, which went GREAT! That run was probably one of the best runs I've been on in a long time. I ran hard, fast, and it was obviously cool outside, which felt great!

Some days I feel like I'm ready for my marathon, other days I don't think I am. After all--there's a 2,000-foot elevation gain from the highest to the lowest point, and I hate hills. On the flip side, it's on a trail in the biggest forestted (sp?) park in the nation. With the direction and elevation always changing, it should keep me on my toes, making it go by faster. It will be interesting, that's for sure.

20 more days. Now that's just crazy.